Shoe dressing kit



Oct'. 30, 1956 J. M. FRANK 2,768,404

SHOE DRESSING KIT Filed April 5, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR JEROME /MA FRA /VK l ATTORNEYS Oct. 30, 1956 J. M. FRANK SHOE; DRESSING KIT 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April '5, 1955 INVENTOR JERUME M. FHA /VK ATTORNEYS SHOE DRESSING KIT Jerome M. Frank, Beverly Hills, Calif., assignor to Knomark Manufacturing Co., Inc., Kings County, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application April 5, 1955, Serial No. 499,277

13 Claims. (Cl. IS-Z'S) This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application Serial No. 408,464, iiled February 5, 1954, now abandoned.

The present invention relates to a collapsible stand and to a shoe dressing kit including such a stand.

The components which make up the complete kit are arranged fork storage within the container so that the depth of the container can be reduced to a minimum. The width and length of the container is only sufficient to accommodate, for storage purposes, a foot stand having a foot rest platform wide enough and long enough to comfortably support a persons shoe as he rests his foot on the platform during the shoe shining operation. The foot stand when stored in the container in a collapsed state provides a platform which may be used for supporting an accessory tray within the container.

One object of the invention is to provide a shoe dressing kit including a complete set of accessories for dressing shoes, the accessories being so arranged for storage within the container that the overall dimensions and proportions of the container are of maximum compactness and are determined by the shape and area of the foot rest.

Another object of the invention is to provide a shoe dressing kit wherein the container for the accessories is open at the top and -the removable fcover for closing the container has on its underside means for suspending V`"nited States Patent a large polishing brush therefrom. The brush may be used without detaching it from the cover, if desired.

Another object of the invention is to provide a shoe dressing kit having a shallow container and a collapsible foot stand normally resting on the floor of the container in a collapsed state when not in use, the collapsed foot stand providing a base on which an accessory tray can be supported within the container. Y

Another object of the invention is to provide a shoe dressing kit having a rectangular container and a rectangular accessory tray which nests rather snugly within the container, the tray having three recessed areas in its floor for accommodating the various accessories in segregated fashion for ready access by the user. The removable cover overlies the tray and the ends of the brush, which is suspended from the underside thereof,

serve in the manner of retaining walls to normally retain the accessories in their preferred storage positions.

Another object of the invention is to provide a collapsible stand, preferably a foot stand, having novel means by which it'is opened into a working position of suitable height and also having latching means for being temporarily anchored in such working position.

A further object is to provide a collapsible foot stand which can be opened while secured to its container.

An additional object is to provide a means for automatically opening the collapsible stand preparatory to the use thereof.

A still further object is to provide a means for easily removing a tray from a shoe dressing kit.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will ICC become apparent from the ensuing specification and appended drawings in which:

rFigure l is an exploded view of the components which make up the shoe dressing kit in one form of the invention;

Figure 2 is a sectional view through the container of Figure l showing the various components of the shoe dressing kit in storage position;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of one form of the collapsible foot stand in its extended or working position;

Figure 4 is a detail view of one form of the latching mechanism for the foot stand;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary detail view taken on the line 5 5 of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of a flexible military type kit; l

AFigure 7 is an exploded perspective view showing the tray and foot pad of Figure 6 in closed position;

Figure 8 is a perspective of the foot pad attached to the container of Figure 6 but in raised position;

Figure 9 is a section on the line 9-9 of Figure 8;

Figure l0 is a section on the line 10-10 of Figure 8;

Figure ll is a section on the line 11-11 of Figure 8; and

Figure 12 is a section on the line 12-12 of Figure 9.

ln general, the shoe dressing kit includes a container A, an accessory tray B, a collapsible shoe stand C and a cover D for the container. The components which make up the shoe dressing kit are so arranged within the Icontainer for purposes that the overall length, width and depth of the container are established at a minimum. For example, it' desired the container need not be more than about 91/2 inches in length, about 3 inches in depth (including the cover assembled thereto) and slightly more than 3 inches in width. The container and the cover can be made of material such as sheet aluminum, sheet steel or brass or of molded synthetic resin plastic material of either, the thermoplastic or thermosetting type, e.' g. cellulose acetate, polystyrene, polymerized methyl methacrylate, phenol-formaldehyde, melamineformaldehyde, diallyl phthalate, rubber, GR-S, etc. The container and cover also can be made of flexible material such as leather, artificial leather or thermoplastic resins, e. g. vinyl chloride polymers and copolymers. The container is preferably of generally rectangular shape and the foot stand as well as the tray may also be made of generally rectangular shape so as to fully utilize the storage area within the container.

Referring more specifically 4t'oV Figures l-S, the foot stand C includes -a supporting base 10 which may be formed as an extrusion or of sheet metal or molded of plastic as for the container. The base 10 has guide channels, generally designated 11 and 12, formed along the side margins thereof with a floor portion 13 joined to the guide channels. The foot rest platform generally designated at 14, may be formed similarly to the base 10 with the guide channels 11a and 12a along its side margins. The base 10 and platform 14, if desired for reducing the cost of manufacture, may be identical parts. A pad 1S made of rubber or some similar material is fixed as with an adhesive to the upper surface of the foot rest platform 14 and is preferably provided with corruga'tions in its exposed surface to prevent the foot from sliding olf the shoe stand during the shoe dressing operation. Alternatively the pad 15 may cover the guide channels as well in which case the adhesive may be dispensed with as shown in Figure 8. A generally U-shaped staple 16 may be hingedly anchored to the platform 14 and may be recessed into a cutout opening in the pad 15 so as to be substantially iiush therewith when in retracted position. The platform 14 provides the bottom of a recess 17, the rim of which is provided by the marginal wall of the opening just referred to. One merely has to insert a finger beneath the bridge portion of the staple, swinging the staplemoutwardly so that-the foot stand may be pulled out of the container. A lazy-tong stanchion assembly generally referred to by the numeral 2t) is utilized for guiding the platform 14 away from the base 10. The platform may then be anchored at a suitable height so that the foot may be rested thereon for shoe dressing purposes, the stanchion or folding strut assembly then functioningvto support the platform in the elevated position. The stanchion assembly includes an outer stanchion or link 21 anjd aninner stanchion or link 22. These stanchions may be in the form of castings of aluminum or equivalent lightweight material or other metal or plastic such as the types previously mentioned. The casting 21 includes spaced parallel legi members 23 and 24 with bosses 25 and 26 interconnecting the legs at their respective ends. The bosses may be integral with the legs to form a unitary rigid stanchion'. Reinforcing webs 27 and 28 extend between the 'opposed legs at either end thereof for reinforcing purposes. The bosses and 26 have trunnions or bars 29 at either end extending beyond the plane of the legs so as' to project into the guide channels formed along the side margins of the base 10 and the platform 14.

The stanchion structure 22 is formed similarly to stanchion 21 except that it is of lesser width so as to fit within the legs of stanchion 21. A spacer bushing 30 is positioned between the legs of stanchion 22 and a pivot pintle 31 projects through all four of the legs and through the spacer bushing thereby forming the pivotal axis of the tongs. Each of the stanchions has a pintle 33 and 34 extending through the respective bosses 25 and 26 which pintles are fixed respectively to the base 10 and to the platform 14 to provide fixed axes about which the stanchions 21 and 22 are free to swing. One end of a tension spring 35 is anchored to the reinforcing web 28 and the other is `anchored to reinforcing web 32. The spring continuously urges the stanchions toward raised position as shown in Figure 3.

When the foot stand is opened up to working position, a latching mechanism automatically anchors the stanchion 22 relative to platform 14 so that the foot stand does not collapse during the foot dressing operation. The latohing mechanism includes a stop member 38which may be in the formy of an angle iron anchored to the underside of platform 14 and which has a stop finger 39 projecting downwardly suiciently to engage and arrest the movement of boss 25 when the foot stand is being opened to working position. The underside of the trunnions 29 at the opposite ends of the boss 25 are notched at 40, 42 to permit the boss 25 to ride over the latch bar 41 when opening up the foot stand. While the depth of the cutout portions of the trunnions is sufficient to permit the trunnions to ride over the latch member 4l, however, the undersurfaces 42 of the trunnions 29 will engage the adjacent overhanging flanges 43 of the guide channels 11a and 12a causing the boss to encounter the downwardly projecting wall portion 39 of the angle iron 38.

In the operation of opening up the foot stand, one finger is simply inserted under the staple 16 and the foot dressing platform is pulled manually upwardly, the tension spring 35 assisting in the operation of opening up the tong members and raising the foot resting platform upwardly and away from the base 10. The trunnions at lthe ends of the stanchions `ride along within the guide channels until latching occurs. The spring 35 may have one or more lof its convolutions atV distorted to provide a recessed area in the spring into which the spacer sleeve 30 projects when the footstand is in fully collapsed position although this is not essential. To unlatch and then collapse the footstand,4 it is only necessary to lift the end of the platform near the staple 16 until the under surfaces 42 of the trunnions engage the iianges 43 or clear the latch bar 41, then downward manual pressure exerted on the foot resting platform at its end near the pintle 33 will collapse the tong assembly, the trunnions having the necessary clearance for passing beneath the latch bar 41.

If the spring or similar resilient means is dispensed with the collapsible foot stand can still bc opened with the aid of the staple 16 Ior by inverting the stand al- -though it is preferred to have the spring 35 present.

When the footstand is fully collapsed and nested within the container as shown in Figure 2, the spacer sleeve 30 may engage the flattened portion 45 of the spring and rest thereon. When in collapsed condition the upper surface of the foot resting platform serves as a supporting platform on which the accessory tray A is supported as shown in Figure 2. The accessory tray may be generally rectangular in shape and include a floor portion 46 which is circumscribed by the upwardly extending side walls 47 and end walls 48. The tray may be molded of plastic such as those previously set forth or some similar material and may have shelf portions 49 formed integrally with the floor of the tray, which shelf portions project upwardly above the plane of the floor and span the width of the tray so as to provide three separated recessed areas 50, 51 and 52 in the oor of the tray. The recesses at either end of the tray may be of suflicient size to accommodate (preferably rectangular shaped) shoe polish containers 53 and 54 positioned endwise therein. The outer side walls 55 of the shelf portions retain the shoe polish containers against sliding about the oor of the tray. The large central recessed area 52 will readily accommodate a shoe polishing cloth 56 neatly arranged in long folds so as not to interfere with the storage space needed to accommodate the bristles 57 ofthe polishing brush 5S. The shelf portions in the oor of the tray may be utilized for storing different types of shoe dressing accessories including polishes contained in bottles 59 and including polish applicating brushes 60.

The cover D may have a pair of spring clips anchored to its underside, the clips being apart sufticiently to accommodate the rigid backing member 61 of the polishing brush 58, when the brush is laid lengthwise along the underside of the cover. Preferably there is employed a reversible brush of the type set forth in my copending application Serial No. 428,990 filed May l1, 1954, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. Each clip may be made from a strip of spring steel formed with a base portion 62 which is anchored to the underside of the cover and a tongue portion 63 which projects outwardly at substantially a degree angle away from the cover. The free end of each tongue portion is bent inwardly and then outwardly to provide a retaining lip 64 which is generally arcuate in cross section. The spring clips with the aid of the retaining lips hold the backing member of the polishing brush in position against the underside of the cover. The tongue portions of the clips, of course spring outwardly in a direction away from each other whenever one desires to insert the brush between the clips for storage purposes or whenever one withdraws the brush from between the clips preparatory to using same.

Viewing Figure 2 it will be noted that the tongue portion of each clip lies in a vertical plane which is adjacent the plane of the respective inner side wall 65 of the shelf portion and the tongue portions in combination `with, the end rows of bristles of the shoe polishing brush serve in the manner of retainer walls to retain the shoe dressing accessories from sliding off the shelves.

lIt will be noted that the plane defined by the underneath working surface of the bristles of the shoe polishing brush projects outwardly substantially beyond the plane defined by the lower margin 68 of the iiange 67 which circumscribes the container cover so that, if de sired,` the brush can be utilized kin the `shoe polishing operation without removing the brush from the cover.

Certain preferred forms of my invention are illustrated in Figures 6-l2.

In the preferred form of the invention the lazy tongs assembly 20 is secured to the container 96 which may be of either rigid or flexible nature by four feet 97 extending through the floor 98 of the container adjacent the corners thereof and into the base of the foot stand. Each foot 97 comprises a rubber spherical support member 69 having a hole in the center thereof and a screw '/'fi fitting snugly in the hole and joining the container to the base of the footstand. The rubber supports help to prevent the container from slipping when in use. Having the footstand secured to the container has several important advantages. Thus the footstand may be opened without removal from the container merely by tilting the latter and the staple 16 of Figure l can be dispensed with. In addition when spring 35 or other resilient means is present the weight of the foot rest can be made sufiicient to maintain the spring inoperative when-the foot rest is in therlower ho-rizontal storage position, i. e., there is no effective pull on the spring. However, as soon as the plane of the foot rest changes, e. g. by even slight tilting of the container the spring is activated to urge the. foot rest into its raised operating position.

In collapsinY the foot stand in this preferred modification of the invention a point will be reached as the stanchions slide toward the extremities of the container wherein the weight of the footstand equals the force exerted by the spring so that when the footstand is lowered past this point the weight of the footstand of itself will be suiiicient to move it into its final storage position. It will be noted that the above is true only when the footstand is disposed in a substantially horizontal position so that the center of gravity thereof is acting through the vertical axis of the base.

The tray 7'1 (Figure 7) which may be a rectangular container without the stands of the tray B in Figure l also assists in keeping the lazy tongs normally in a closed position as does the cover 72 (Figure 6) or the cover D (Figure l) so that the lazy tongs member does not accidentally open when the container is being transported. It will be evident that thev spring could be strong enough to open the root rest'merely upon removal of the tray and/or the cover but preferably the spring is only strong enough to become effective upon tilting of the container in the aforementioned manner to change the plane of the foot'rest.

It also is evident that the foot rest can be secured to the container by means of an adhesive rather than through the feet of the container. It is even possible to dispense with the base l@ of the foot stand and permit the floor 98 or", the container to serve as the base of the foot stand. in such case the longitudinal sides 7S and 79 of the container could have anges secured thereto which would serve to form guide channels for the stanchions.

While in the preferred form the base 10 has guide channels 11 and 12 and the foot rest platform 14 has guide channels 11a and 12a as shown in Figures 3 and 8, the guide channels can take other forms. Thus the groove instead of being formed by lateral flanges could be formed by slots cut in the elements 11, 12, 11a and 12a.

As shown in Figures 8 and ll, the-pintles 33 and 34 can be dispensed with and the fixed ends of the stanchions secured to the base 10 and the platform 14 respectively by crimping as at 73 and 74. This latter method is more economical than the former and is equally effective in providing fixed axes about which the stanchions 21 and 22 are free to swing.

While the spring 35 is shown in the drawings as being connected between the two stanchions it is evident that the spring or other resilient means could be connected between one stanchion and the base with equal effect in urging the stanchions into the open position.

As shown in Figures 9 and l2, the `latching means '75 can be stamped out of the platform 14 and comprise a stop member 76 projecting downwardly sufficiently to engage and arrest the movement of the stanchion 22 and a shorter latch bar 99 over which the stanchion 22 may travel. There should be just enough space in the channels 11o and 12a attached to the platform to permit the stanchion to clear the latch bar 99. Preferably one of the stanchions 22 is longer than `the other stanchion 21 so that in the raised position the platform makes an acute angle with the horizontal rather than being perfectly level.

As illustrated in Figure l in a preferred embodiment of the invention, the container A can have recesses 77 cut near the midportion ofthe sides 78 and 79 thereof. Correspondingly, the tray 71 can have laterally extending tabs 80 attached -to the sides 81 thereof, The tabs 80 cooperate with the recesses 77 in aiding in the removal of the tray from the container.

The cover 72 can have a nameplate holder 83 attached thereto. The holder also can serve as a handle in removing the cover.

As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the container 96 can be made of leather or other flexible material and thc lazy tongs assembly secured to the base 98 thereof and the cover can comprise flaps 84 and 85 and overlying iiaps 86 and S7 secured by snap-on fasteners 88. Other type fasteners such as a zipper for example can also be used in this embodiment. It is also possible to employ a tray in this embodiment by making the cover fiaps of sufiicient size to cover the tray as well as footstands as shown in Figures 6 and 7.

I claim:

l. A portable compact shoe shine kit comprising a container including a base disposed in the lower portion thereof, a foot rest provided with a face for receiving a shoe carried by said base, linkage means connecting said foot rest with said base for substantial rectilinear movement of the foot rest with respect to said base between a lower storage position and a raised operating position, said face being disposed outside of said container when in said raised operating position, said linkage means being disposed substantially entirely between said foot rest and said base and providing a storage space directly above said foot rest when the latter is in said storage position but otherwise said container closely embracing said linkage means and said foot rest in said storage position.

2. The kit as defined in claim l wherein said base is separate from said container and is secured to the lower portion of the container by feet extending through the bottom of the container and fixed to said base.

3. A kit as defined in claim l wherein said linkage means comprises a pair of stanchions pivotally interconnected intermediate their ends, one of said stanchions having one end pivotally connected with said Ebase and its other end slidably connected with said foot rest, and the other of said stanchions having one end pivotally connected with said foot rest and its other end slidably connected with said base.

4. A kit as defined in claim 3 wherein one of said stanchions is longer than the other so that when said foot rest is in said operative position said face will be disposed in a plane making an acute angle with the horizontal.

5. A kit as defined in claim l including resilient means for urging said foot rest into said operative position, said resilient means being inoperable when said foot rest is in a horizontal storage position and being operable, in response to the tilting of said container to dispose said foot rest at a predetermined angular position with respect to the horizontal, to move said foot rest from said stor age position to said operative position.

6. A portable compact shoe shine kit comprising: a container having a foot rest provided with a face for receiving a shoe;^ linkage means mounting said foot rest in said container for substantial rectilinear movement between a lower storage position wherein said face is disposed within said container and an operative position wherein said face is disposed out of said container; and resilient means for urging said foot rest into said operative position, said resilient means being inoperable when said face is in a horizontal storage position and being operable, in response to the tilting of said container to dispose said face in a predetermined angular position with respect to the horizontal, to move said foot rest from said storage position to said operative position.

7. A kit as defined in claim 6 wherein said linkage means comprises a pair of intersecting stanchions.

8. A kit as defined in claim 7 wherein one of said stanchions is longer than the other so that when said foot rest is in said operative position said face will be disposed in a plane making an acute angle with the horizontal.

9. A kit as defined in claim 6 including an implement carrying tray removably nested within said container directly above said face when said foot rest is in said storage position.

l0. A compact shoe shine kit comprising: a container; a collapsible foot stand nested in the container and resting on the oor thereof, said foot stand including a base, a foot pad and a lazy tong assembly interconnecting the pad and base; a tray normally nested Within the container above and resting upon the upper surface of the foot pad; a cover for the container removably secured thereto; a pair of spring clips fixed to the underside of the cover and spaced from each other to support a shoe brush by suspending the brush beneath the cover, said tray being spaced from the under surface of the cover suiciently to accommodate the depth of a shoe brush.

11. A compact shoe shine kit comprising: a generally rectangular shaped container, said container including spaced side walls, spaced end walls connecting the side walls and a oor, the container being open at the top; a collapsible foot stand nested in the container and resting on the oor thereof, said foot stand including a base, a foot pad and a lazy tong assembly interconnecting the pad and base; a tray normally nested within the container above and resting upon the upper surface of the foot pad, said tray including a floor and side walls circumscribing the floor, said floor having a pair of shelf portions lying in a plane above the plane of the oor, said shelf portions dening recesses in theV floor of the tray for accommodating accessories, a cover `for the container removably secured thereto; a pair of spring clips fixed to the underside 0f the cover and spaced from each other to support a shoe brush by suspending the brush beneath the cover, said tray being spaced from the under surface of the cover sufficiently to accommodate the depth of a shoe brush.

12. A compact shoe dressing kit comprising: a generally rectangularly shaped container, said container including a floor and side walls joined to and circumscribing the floor; a collapsible removable foot stand nested in the container and resting on the floor thereof; said foot stand including a base, a foot pad and a lazy tong assembly interconnecting the pad and base; a tray removably nested within the container above and resting upon the upper surface of the foot pad, said tray being generally rectangularly shaped and including a floor and side walls joined to and circumscribing the iloor; spaced shelf portions in the Hoor of the tray, projecting above the plane of said oor and thereby defining recesses in the floor for segregating accessories stored on the floor of the tray; a cover removably secured to the container; a pair of clips fixed to the underside of the cover and spaced from each other to support a shoe brush by suspending the brush beneath thecover and within a portion of said tray of sufficient height to accommodate a shoe brush, the area between the clips overlying the recess between the shelf portions of the tray.

13. A shoe shine kit as set forth in claim 12 wherein the clips on the cover lie in a vertical plane which is adjacent to the vertical plane at one end of each shelf portion, whereby to retain accessories which are resting on the shelf portions from being dislodged therefrom.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 848,465 Homeyer w Mar. 26, 1907 1,693,601 Groves Dec. 4, 1928 FOREIGN PATENTS 222,128 Great Britain Dec. 24, 1924 433,628 Italy Apr. 10, 1948 

